Honestly, Iâve been wanting to get hit by a car for a while now. Therefore, I really shouldnât complain now that Iâm lying on the hard street flat on my back like a bug and just as unable to get up.
What I did not wish for was for this to happen right in front of the school just as all the students file out of the busses and onto the sidewalk a few feet away from me. I also didnât anticipate the Vehicle hitting me being a bus.
âAre you okay?â the old driver crouches down next to me. All around us, more students gather, some reaching for their phones.
I think.
I try to slip out of my backpack just to notice that my shoulder hurts like a female dog. Dammit! I have to write a test later today. If I miss it, Miss Yeng will certainly be angry. That old lady doesnât like staying after school so a student can write a make-up test. Believe me, I speak of experience. Besides, she is seriously scary. At least itâs Friday and thatâs always a highlight.
âCan you hear me?â the bus driver repeats, pulling me from my thoughts.
âYes. Sorry, yes. Iâm alright,â I assure him before attempting to get up once more.
âHang on, let me help you. Iâm really sorry I didnât see you. Do you need a ride to the hospital?â he asks slowly as he pulls me to my feet.
âItâs no problem, really. Have a good day,â I tell him with a smile before walking off and trying to blend in with the rest of the students. That, at least, isnât a very hard task since all the students of Sommerstall Academy are heading to their first period.
Now, you might be wondering how I managed to get hit by a bus that drove about 5 mph on a street I cross every day. All I can say is that it was not my fault! It was totally his! If he hadnât caught my eye from where he was sitting inside that bloody vehicle, I would have noticed the bus ahead of his was starting to drive. Iâm just thankful I didnât drive to school today. If anything would have happened to my Vespa, I would have cried. Though since itâs a beautiful spring day and itâs only a fifteen-minute walk to school, I left her at home.
Once I sat down at my desk, I check the time. School starts in ten minutes, so I can still read. I should have time for at least five pages if no one interrupts me.
I take my book out of my backpack, trying not to wince while moving my left arm. Iâm thankful I always carry my current read inside a protective bag so todayâs fall hasnât damaged it. With my record, ârather safe than sorryâ is the key to survival.
âHey, Lorence! I heard you kissed a bus this morning. Howâs that for a first kiss?â my classmate Orion yells on his way to his chair on the opposite side of the classroom. I hate that nickname, which naturally is exactly why he keeps using it. Thanks, Mom, for naming me Florence, I guess.
âProbably better than yours,â I fire back. He actually looks impressed, or shocked, who can tell with this guy? âSorry, that was mean,â I mumble before turning back to my book. I hear Orion talking to his friends Markus and Liam and it takes everything in me not to become agitated. Honestly, some people have no respect for others. Itâs eight am and those idiots are already laughing and talking loud enough for the whole room to hear.
âMorning Flo. I heard what happened, you okay?â Benji asks while pulling me in a sideway hug. Itâs slightly awkward since Iâm sitting and heâs a giant but I appreciate any hug I can get. Even though the smell of weed coming off him this early in the morning isnât very pleasant.
âYeah, Iâm fine, thanks.â I look past my friend as a glimpse of black hair catches my eye. Elija walks past Benji, sending me a quick smile before sitting down next to Orion. My cheeks heat up like every other time he does that. I donât know what it is with that guy. I can usually handle people smiling at me. Hell, I smile at everyone I see. With him, itâs just different.
Not sure if itâs his unruly black hair, his style and chains, and rings, his cute brown eyes, or those soft-looking lips- Oh my, never mind.
I raise my gaze back to Benjiâs only for him to lift his perfectly thick eyebrows knowingly. I laugh in embarrassment before shoving my friend away. I follow his movement only to get another glimpse at Elija. I notice Jamieâs already in his seat which means their group is now complete.
More students fill the room, smiling at and greeting me as they do so before class begins. I couldnât even read a single page.
The next forty-five minutes consist of me trying to focus on the teacherâs lecture while fighting the urge to look at a certain guy on the other side of the room.
Itâs embarrassing that after a year of being in the same class as Elija I still get excited each time I see him as if it were news. Itâs not like weâve exchanged more than two sentences in all the time weâve known each other. He just somehow piques my interest.
Thatâs why Friday is a highlight. Itâs the day when most people go out for lunch while I stay in the classroom to do my homework or study. Notice how I said most since Elija and some of his friends are often back in the room with me in a matter of minutes. Even though the two of us donât speak, I keep catching him staring at me just as much as I get caught myself.
Iâd be scared he thinks Iâm a creep if it werenât for that small smile he keeps flashing me. That smile, dammit.